DDR players vs. normal people

[Bonnietta]

[Mark]

I'm not a social outcast by any means and I play DDR atleast once a week for a few hours. In fact, DDR has helped my social life if anything.

My friends at school don't mind if I play or not, neither does anyone else for that matter.

[Justinian...]

ddr doesnt really affect any social classes and stuff for me i mean it's just like a game
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[Zukin-Man]

I mostly see AZNs and punks at our arcade, with occasional appearances by random other groups who rape the same songs on Basic.

As for me, I'm just the token nerd who sits by himself and gets stared at when he plays on Maniac...and then a little bit more afterwards.
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[DJ Tau]

Hmm, well I play DDR quite a bit, but then again I don't talk about it much; there isn't really a massive scene up in Edinburgh (or any scene for that matter, I think I've seen about two or three other Heavy players in this whole city, and I've been to both arcades that have a machine. Even Standard players are rather hard to come by). I try to avoid talking about DDR all that much. People here aren't too into the game and that's their choice, so trying to change that tends to just piss people off.

I really do miss the social aspect of it though. Back when I lived in England, every time I went to the arcade I'd get my buttocks kicked by at least one person and then hang out with them for a bit, then talk on various forums afterwards. These days it's all townies and no serious players whatsoever; there's a few annoying teenage girls who ridicule me for not having a life and yet are always down there whenever I am. At least I actually do something new every now and again as opposed to bar raping Afronova Light for 2/3 stages every game.

I'm expecting a pair of metal pads sometime soon though. Maybe I can at least use that to get the people in my dorms interested (Storage of those things is going to be a royal pain though. They only just don't fit under my bed, going by the dimensions on the website)

[penguin334]

i am not an outcast. But i can see why you say that. I have seen a lot of gothic people at the montgomery mall, so yeah, i get it.

i dont really play if there is more than 3 poeple there. I dont really talk to other players, but just play(waka laka at least once a game).

i dont like the gothic clothes (sp?) at all. I dont really like to dress in black, either. I have been called a prep at least once.

No one at my high school knows i play, save 4 people. Other that that, im a little quiet, but i play football.

I think that will help my football a little, because of teh stamina, and it helps me be able to move my feet really fast, but that dosent matter bcause i will be a lineman.


-a prepy yoshi

[a breezy era]

I never really thought of it in terms of outcast, but the people that I play DDR with are often somewhat nerdy. Not a bad thing of course.

From what I've seen, most of the people I'm with at DDR while SOCIALIZING are very friendly, and also have similar interests, for example some interests are anime, gaming, and japanese music among others. The fact that DDR is a fairly unique hobby in my area and quite a few others makes the crowd that does it a bit of our own social group section, because we tend to like other similar things as well. There are plenty of people who aren't stereotypical that play obviously, but it's like any other hobby: you do it, and you meet people that like that too, which means there similar to you in some way at least. And there's nothing wrong with that! Just my 2 cents, is all.

[Quik_Nero]

i aint no social outcast

i think maybe you speak from personal experience but most the kids i knew that DDRed in High School were pretty cool kids and most in the popular group! Sadly, I got into the popular clique in Junior year... but anywho... in college however, most people DONT DDR, or at least the ones I know, so im usually stuck playing with high school kids or something.

PPL that i see play DDR well:

AzN kids in large numbers
White kids (not punks or goths)
Hispanic kids (large groups)
Afro Americans (omg, they freestyle so well!!!)

and there are other groups that dont play too well or are noobs

so all likes of ppl play DDR =)

its fun and a great way to lose weight (in my case, i loset 30 in a few months... but lost a lot of money =D)
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[The legend of ZAKU 0079]

Since I'm half metalhead and half goth, I don't consider myself as a social outcast one bit. For starters, I'm just your average college student who represents his constituents by serving as a Student Senator , as well was being voted Prom King in my Senior year of HS. I've done more braver things in front of my friends to show that I'm a DDR Freak like bring my DDR pad and bust out in my school's viedo game tournament. Also, all of the DDR players in my school are of different pop cultures (metalhead, rapheads, punks, etc.) and I know for a fact that they are not the ones who are crawled up inside their closets. To make a long story short, playing DDR and beleiving for a second that the jocks and the norms will ostrasize you is not a sin.
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[alan_robert_1950]

My two cents:

Social outcasts? Not necessarily. NO.
Unique? Generally speaking, YES.
And from a broad variety of backgrounds.

I've been playing DDR a very short time and I am NO KID. I'm 52.
I will be 53 before the end of this month. So, next year I turn 18 ... for the THIRD time.

I was impressed by the game itself, but I was equally impressed by those who play it, and for similar reasons. Here's what I mean:

DDR is a very unique game because it is so physical. This distinguishes it from most video games, and it caught my attention immediately for that reason. Video games played with hand controls have never captured my attention, nor have RPGs or anything else nor anything else in the computer game category (except for FREE CELL!!!).

But I noticed right away that the kids who play DDR are very different. It isn't a game for everybody. Most who enter the arcade walk right past it. It's too much of a challenge for them. Believe me, I'm playing with some outdated equipment -- ME -- and I'm wearing an ankle brace on my left foot to prove it. But I love DDR, and I won't quit playing.

When I asked about the game, those playing it were all too happy to explain it to me and encourage me to try it. No, they weren't trying to get me to make a fool of myself. Quite the opposite. They were genuinely pleased that a person my age (or ANYBODY) might take a sincere interest in "their" game (now "our" game). I was offered alot of information about how to get started at home with Playstation2, and I did just that. I don't play at the mall much, but I do enjoy going and watching the kids who do play there. For one thing, they deserve an audience for their achievements. When nobody else is in line for the machines, I play in order to get the feel of the arcade machines. Mostly, I play at home where I now have two soft pads (BNS & MYMYBOX) and a BNS metal pad.

So, what's so different about DDR players? They tend to be self-driven, and they tend to be perfectionists. This is especially true of the real fanatics. I'll go out on a limb and say that the players I've met are certainly above average in intelligence. DDR players tend to be in competition with themselves rather than against others. And DDR players are extremely supportive of each other, at least insofar as concerns their accomplishments and their achievements within the realm of DDR. They are quite remarkably HUMBLE about what they have achieved (part of the perfectionism -- see story below).

They are quick to welcome others to the game, quick to offer encouragement to the newbie, quick to remind the newbie that they were once a newbie too, and quick to share joyously in the successes of other players, however minor those successes might be, quick to offer advice on how to progress, and how to buy hardware and software. One of our local players formed a statewide website and is in the process of organizing a local tournament. Nobody playing any other game in the arcade is doing THAT. DDR is a community.

Oh, here's the story I mentioned before: When I first began watching the better players at the mall, I asked several, "How long did it take you to get this good?". And without exception, the reply was, "Who? Me? I'm okay, but I'm not that good!". Amazing. Just amazing.

Outcasts? No. Just kids who dance to the beat of their own drum!!!
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[The legend of ZAKU 0079]

[Mysterio]

Heh, I don't think I have much to contribute but...

[alan_robert_1950]

[alan_robert_1950]

[jtrobot]

Funny... I always thought DDR would be where jocks and nerds finally saw eye to eye and formed a new breed of social status. But I guess that's not the case.

Looking back at my high school years (I graduated in 1998), yes--I considered myself a social outcast. But you have to remember that this social acceptance crap exists almost exclusively in high school, and it won't determine who you are for the rest of your life. You've probably heard that a million times, but I can't stress how true that is. Once you're done with high school, you can be who you want to be and the general public will be nice to you regardless (unless you're a complete jerk).

Anyway, to sum up, don't worry about it. High school life is awkward and uncomfortable, and that's just the way it is. Bleh.
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[alan_robert_1950]

[radicalfaith360]

What the hell?! I'm not a social outcast and I've been playing DDR for 1 year and 7 months now. People who play this game aren't any different then they were before they started playing DDR. Not to my extent, anyway.

[nordic316]

[Ryu_Hirakashi]

I guess since I'm in my mid-20's I guess my answer is going to be a little different.

For me I really am different from a lot of people. That in itself makes me an outcast. I am an idealist, a radical thinker, a person who is always looking for something to challenge his mind.

I look at DDR for the technical challenge and picking music apart to understand it's technical means. So this tends to make me quite distant from most other people that play.

But because of thise instinctive desire I have nearly risen above nearly all other players in skill. I sometimes wish I wasn't the kind of person I am, and sometimes I can't help but revel it's unmistakable advantages it has given me.

Part of the reason I'm really distant towards other ddr players is because I'm usually always much older than them, and I'm not exactly the one to hang around with a bunch of high schoolers.

Everyone at the arcade I frequent acts so immature that it's sickening.

What can I say, some outcasts exist and I guess this is my fate.
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